Object Pok\u00e9mon got a bad rap, and have had a tough time shaking it. When Pok\u00e9mon Black<\/em> and White <\/em>ushered in Pok\u00e9mon\u2019s fifth generation, there was a bit of consternation around the new monster designs. Players argued that some of Unova\u2019s new Pok\u00e9mon were uninspired, with designers slapping a set of eyes on an ice cream cone or two and calling it a day. While, sure, not every \u2018mon can be a 10\/10 like Sprigatito or Pikachu, object Pok\u00e9mon deserve more love. Some of them are really great! And object Pok\u00e9mon have really been around since the earliest days of the franchise.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Whenever I think of Pok\u00e9mon designed around everyday objects, I start with Chandelure. It\u2019s the freakin\u2019 best. It’s the final evolution from Litwick, a cable (adorable), and is a dual fire- and ghost-type. Chandelure isn\u2019t just eyes slapped on an object; instead, it plays with the form of a chandelier, turning a stained-glass base into a face with the branching spokes serving as Chandelure\u2019s arms. Its Pok\u00e9dex entries, like this one from Pok\u00e9mon White<\/em>, play into its eerie, frightening aura: \u201cBeing consumed in Chandelure’s flame burns up the spirit, leaving the body behind.\u201d<\/p>\n Truth be told, many of the best object Pok\u00e9mon are great because they\u2019re ghost-types. It\u2019s similar to how garbage Pok\u00e9mon (not bad Pok\u00e9mon; literal garbage) explore the ways pollution has affected the natural world \u2014 object Pok\u00e9mon explore what happens when living beings die. Sometimes their spirits possess things and, boom, you got a dope new Pok\u00e9mon.<\/p>\n Formed by the spirits of people and Pok\u00e9mon, the killer balloon Drifloon \u201ctugs on the hands of children to steal them away. However, it gets pulled around instead,\u201d according to the Pearl<\/em> Pok\u00e9dex. Object Pok\u00e9mon trying to kill you is actually pretty common. Here\u2019s Sinistcha\u2019s Pok\u00e9dex entry from Scarlet<\/em>: \u201cIt pretends to be tea, trying to fool people into drinking it so it can drain their life-force. Its ruse is generally unsuccessful.\u201d Unsuccessful \u2014 but still frightening!<\/p>\n Am I biased because ghost-types are my favorite, and a possessed teacup and a child-snatching balloon are way cooler than a cloud of gas? Perhaps! But there are some great non-ghost object Pok\u00e9mon too, like Honedge (a sword!), Stonjourner (Stonehenge!), Carkol (a cart full o\u2019 coal!), and Klefki (an adorable and whimsical collection of keys!).<\/p>\n Of course, not every object Pok\u00e9mon is a hit. I too think the gear Pok\u00e9mon Klink and its evolution line are pretty dull. Bronzor is just a mirror. Sandygast is a vaguely menacing pile of sand, its design undercut by the shovel sticking out from its head.<\/p>\n You know what else is pretty dull? So many of Generation 1\u2019s designs. Millennial Pok\u00e9mon fans (me) will often point to the OG Pok\u00e9mon games as one of the best Gens. Pok\u00e9mon Red<\/em>, Blue<\/em>, and Yellow<\/em> have several of the all-time best Pocket Monsters, like their starter trio, Eevee and its evolutions, Gyarados, and more.<\/p>\n But Gen 1 also had some wild stinkers, including some of the more boring object Pok\u00e9mon. Geodude? Dude\u2019s a rock with arms and a face. Magnemite? A ball with magnets attached. Voltorb? A Pok\u00e9 Ball with a face. And that\u2019s to say nothing of how many of Gen 1\u2019s monsters, and Pok\u00e9mon in general, are just slightly more fanciful versions of real-world animals. If dogs and birds can be Pok\u00e9mon, why can\u2019t key rings and teapots?<\/p>\n With Gen 10 on the way, I look forward to what object Pok\u00e9mon it inevitably brings, no matter what the naysayers spout \u2014 and no matter if those object Pok\u00e9mon try to drain my life force. I\u2019ll love them all the same.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/static0.polygonimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/pokemon-legends-z-a-chandelure.jpg?q=49&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=2\")
\n <\/picture>Image: Game Freak\/The Pok\u00e9mon Company, Nintendo via Polygon<\/small><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n![\"Klefki](\"https:\/\/static0.polygonimages.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/worst-pokemon-klefki.jpg?q=70&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=1\")
\n <\/picture>Image: TV Tokyo<\/small><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n